Fans and the media alike have a hard time telling what the Iowa Hawkeye football team will be week by week.
Could we see the team that got the solid victory over Rutgers last week or the Iowa team that struggled to get anything going offensively against Iowa State? There's no doubt about it: They will need to play their absolute best this weekend.
On homecoming weekend, the 11th-ranked Indiana Hoosiers come to town, who are as good, if not better than, the team that made the College Football Playoff last year.
Led by second-year head coach Curt Cignetti, the Hoosiers are undefeated on the season and are coming off a 63-10 win over Illinois last week. All of the units on the field need to be at their best in this game. Here are three keys to beating this talented Hoosiers team
A disciplined defense is needed all four quarters
The defense was the biggest weakness of the Hawkeyes in their last game against Rutgers by far. They gave up 21 first-half points and allowed 330 passing yards for the game.
If this is a recurring occurrence, this game could be a blowout from the get-go. The Hoosiers have one of the most talented offenses in the country, averaging 559 offensive yards per game and scoring 48.7 points per game, both of which rank second in all of college football.
It will all start with the defensive line. If the line can dominate the line of scrimmage for most of the game, Indiana's offense will be out of sync and slowed down.
Moving to the linebackers, the missed tackles have to go away. We have all seen too many missed tackles from the linebacker corps over the past few days, so bringing back sound defense is imperative.
Finally, the defensive backs must be more physical and always stay with their receiver. If we can see these changes happen, the team has a real shot of success.
Develop long and sustained drives
Not only is this Hoosiers team talented offensively, but they are also just as talented defensively. They allow only 248.7 yards per game, which is 12th in the country, and 11.0 points per game, which is ninth in the country.
They have had success getting their opponents to take short drives, allowing their offense to stay on the field for more extended periods.
One thing that has been the case over the 26 years that Kirk Ferentz has coached for Iowa is that they want to wear out the opposing defenses.
Fans have mocked his philosophy, but the team's consistent ability to dominate the time of possession and get good field position has led to their success over the years.
If they can wear down this Indiana defense by getting several first downs and running the ball with success, the Hawkeyes have a good shot at scoring some points.
Keep the penalties to a minimum
Many could argue that this is the most talented and physically gifted team that the Hawkeyes will face all season.
The physicality and speed could cause players to incur penalties that slow down drives or give momentum to the Hoosiers. In the team's only loss of the season, they got called for four penalties against Iowa State, all of which had scoring implications.
Playing brilliant football and utilizing technique to create advantages rather than relying on potential for missed penalties is crucial in this game. If the Hawkeyes incur costly penalties in this game, the Hoosiers will take advantage.
The coaches will want to emphasize this going into the game and make it a focal point.
This is going to be a great game to watch, not only for fans of these teams but also for football fans in general. These two teams have a lot of strengths, and we'll see them on full display in this game.
The fans will need to be as loud as possible to help pull off the potential upset in this game and make a statement to the entire Big 10.
Final score prediction: Indiana 24, Iowa 21